Binance loses $6.3 billion in record hack as bitcoin drops below $77,000

Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, lost about $6.3 billion in a hack that analysts described as the biggest crypto theft on record, triggering a broader market selloff. The exchange halted withdrawals Friday and said it would cover customer losses with company funds. Binance also said roughly $3 billion of the stolen assets had been frozen on blockchain networks, with co-founder Yi He indicating withdrawals could resume by Sunday. Blockchain intelligence firms TRM Labs, Chainalysis and Elliptic linked the attack to North Korea. Bitcoin fell below $77,000 for the first time in more than a month before trimming losses, while BNB and other tokens also slid.